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Why is there so much discontent with democracy across Latin America? Are regimes being judged by unrealistic standards of success—or is there legitimate cause for criticism in light of widespread failures to deliver either transparency or effective public policies? Addressing these questions across a variety of dimensions, the authors explore the diverse ways in which the specific nature of Latin American democracy explains the current performance of the region's democratic governments

As Latin America's new democratic regimes have decentralized, the region's capital cities--and their elected mayors--have gained increasing importance. Capital City Politics in Latin America tells the story of these cities: how they are changing operationally, how the the empowerment of mayors and other municipal institutions is exacerbating political tensions between local executives and regional and national entities, and how the cities' growing significance affects traditional political patterns throughout society. The authors weave a tapestry that illustrates the impact of local, national, and transnational power relations on the strategies available to Latin America's capital city mayors as they seek to transform their greater influence into desired actions

"Three trends have dominated the political economy of integration during the last two decades: globalization, economic nationalism, and regionalization. This book explores comparative regional integration, focusing on both intra-regional integration and relations among regions in the context of power. The most common focus of integration studies has been on the logic of cooperation, but there is another logic of integration: power. The relevance of power today is represented by the relations within the Eurozone, especially between creditors and debtors. By the same line of reasoning, integration in Asia cannot ignore the respective roles of China, Japan, and Korea, nor the unresolved disputes about Taiwan, Hong Kong, and the islands in the South China Sea. This edited volume addresses the role of power in regional integration in three contexts: (1) the role of hegemonic external actors (the US and China) in regional integration; (2) the role of core states within regions (Germany, China, Japan, and Brazil); and (3) the role of non-core states - smaller and middle-range powers (Italy and Greece in Europe, South Korea and Malaysia in Asia, and Argentina, Colombia, Uruguay, and Paraguay in Latin America). This book will benefit students and scholars of international relations and comparative political economy, especially those with an interest in integration studies and comparative regionalism"--

"Various kinds of informal and extra-legal settlements-commonly called shantytowns, favelas, or barrios-are the prevailing type of urban land use in much of the developing world. United Nations estimates suggest that there are close to 900 million people living in squatter communities worldwide, with the number expected to increase. Informal Urbanization in Latin America investigates prevailing strategies for addressing informal settlements, which started to shift away from large-scale slum clearance to on-site upgrading in Latin America over the last forty years, by improving its public spaces, infrastructure and facilities. The cases in this book range from one micro intervention (the Villa Tranquila Project in Buenos Aires) to three large-scale government run projects like the celebrated Favela Bairro Program in Rio de Janeiro, the social housing program in São Paulo and the famous Proyectos Urbanos Integrales Approach in Medellín. The cases show a collaborative and sensitive transformation of landscape and public space, and provide designers and planners with the tools to develop better strategies that can mitigate the volatility that the residents of non-formal neighborhoods are exposed to. The book is a must-read for all who are interested or working in the global urbanization as well as social equity"--

"The Green City and Social Injustice examines the recent urban environmental trajectory of twenty-one cities in Europe and North America over a 20 year period. It analyses the circumstances under which greening interventions can create a new set of inequalities for socially vulnerable residents while also failing to eliminate other environmental risks and impacts. Based on fieldwork in ten countries, and on analysis of core planning, policy, and activist documents and data, the book offers a critical view of the growing green planning orthodoxy in the Global North. It highlights the entanglements of this tenet with neoliberal municipal policies including budget cuts for community initiatives, long-term green spaces, and housing for the most fragile residents; and the focus on large-scale urban redevelopment and high-end real estate investment. It also discusses hopeful experiences from cities where urban greening has long been accompanied by social equity policies or managed by community groups organizing around environmental justice goals and strategies. The book examines how displacement and gentrification in the context of greening is not only physical, but also socio-cultural, creating new forms of social erasure and trauma for vulnerable residents. Its breadth and diversity allow students, scholars, and researchers to debunk the often-depoliticized branding and selling of green cities and reinsert core equity and justice issues into green city planning - a much-needed perspective. Building from this critical view, the book also shows how cities who prioritise equity in green access, in secure housing, and in bold social policies can achieve both environmental and social gains for all"--

Introduction / Alejandra Trejo-Nieto and José L. Niño-Amézquita -- A framework for contextualising metropolitan governance in Latin America / Alejandra Trejo-Nieto -- Bogotá : metropolitan centralism, governance and service delivery / José L. Niño-Amézquita -- Governance stuctures and the unequal provision of services in metropolitan Lima / Matteo Stiglich-Labarthe and María Vásquez -- Fragmented governance, service provision and inequality in Mexico City metropolitan area / Alejandra Trejo-Nieto -- The challenging evolution of integrated governance in metropolitan Buenos Aires / Gabriel Lanfranchi -- Metropolitan Santiago : from dispersion and inequality to the challenge of effective intergovernmental governance / Esteban Valenzuela VT, Claudia Toledo A. and Osvaldo Henríquez O. -- An assessment of metropolitan governance and service provision in Latin America / Alejandra Trejo-Nieto.

Many contemporary party organizations are failing to fulfill their representational role in contemporary democracies. While political scientists tend to rely on a minimalist definition of political parties (groups of candidates that compete in elections), this volume argues that this misses how parties can differ not only in degree but also in kind. With a new typology of political parties, the authors provide a new analytical tool to address the role of political parties in democratic functioning and political representation. The empirical chapters apply the conceptual framework to analyze seventeen parties across Latin America. The authors are established scholars expert in comparative politics and in the cases included in the volume. The book sets an agenda for future research on parties and representation, and it will appeal to those concerned with the challenges of consolidating stable and programmatic party systems in developing democracies.

"This book investigates the history, development and current state of anti-corruption agencies in Latin America. In recent decades, specialized anti-corruption agencies have sprung up as countries seek to respond to corruption and to counter administrative and political challenges. However, the characteristics, resources, power and performance of these agencies reflect the political and economic environment in which they operate. This book draws on a range of case studies from across Latin America, considering both national anti-corruption bodies and agencies created and administered by, or in close coordination with, international organizations. Together, these stories demonstrate the importance of the political will of reformers, the private interests of key actors, the organizational space of other agencies, the position of advocacy groups, and the level of support from the public at large. This book will be a key resource for researchers across political science, corruption studies, development, and Latin American Studies. It will also be valuable guide for policy makers and professionals in NGOs and international organizations working on anti-corruption advocacy and policy advice"--

In this major work an economist with long experience as an advisor in developing countries explores the conflict between market forces and political reform that has led straight into Latin America's most serious problems. John Sheahan addresses three central concerns: the persistence of poverty in Latin American countries despite rising national incomes, the connection between economic troubles and political repression, and the relationships between Latin America and the rest of the world in trade and finance, as well as overall dependence. His comprehensive explanation of why many Latin Americans identify open political systems with frustration and economic breakdown will interest not only economists but also a broad range of other social scientists. This is "political economy" in the classical sense of the word, establishing a clear connection between the political and economic realities of Latin America

Social and political transitions in Latin America : from the left turn's rise to its decline / Daniel S. Leon, Carolina Rozo-Higuera, Karen Silva-Torres -- Radical left-wing political regimes in the context of the Latin American "left turn" / Radek Buben and Jan Němec -- The return of Mano Dura in Venezuela : the political economy of transitions in urban security policies since 1950 / Daniel S. Leon -- Education, labor, and inequality in Ecuador, 2006-2016 : building social convergence / Ernesto Nieto-Carrillo -- Archives, memory and human rights : the right to truth and the right to tell in Colombian policies and memory initiatives / Carolina Rozo-Higuera -- Transformations in the Colombian migration regime amidst the Venezuelan migration crisis : an introduction to the analysis of the refugee category / Maria Gabriela Trompetero Vicent -- Transitions of university autonomy in Ecuador : from market heteronomy to responsible autonomy / Rina Pazos and Jorge Fabara -- Peronism is a sentiment : affect and ideology in Argentine populism / Julia Fierman -- The nexus between social movements and transition : insights from the Bolivian TIPNIS conflict / Maximilian Görgens -- Political violence and religious change in Ayacucho, Peru : reconciliation and forgiveness as local mechanisms among evangelical conflict survivors / Ariane Kovac -- From victimization to political action? Understanding the (un)existing political participation of Central American immigrants in Mexico / Indi Carolina Kryg -- Hirschman revisited : exit, voice, and loyalty in the Venezuelan crisis / Stiven Tremaria -- Seven theses on the refeudalization of Latin America / Olaf Kaltmeier -- Liminal transition processes in Latin America / Carolina Rozo-Higuera, Daniel S. Leon, and Karen Silva-Torres.

Intro -- Contents -- Foreword -- Acknowledgments -- Detecting Fiscal-Monetary Causes of Inflation -- A Framework for Studying the Monetary and Fiscal History of Latin America -- Argentina -- The History of Argentina -- Discussion of the History of Argentina 1 -- Discussion of the History of Argentina 2 -- Bolivia -- The History of Bolivia -- Discussion of the History of Bolivia -- Brazil -- The History of Brazil -- Discussion of the History of Brazil 1 -- Discussion of the History of Brazil 2 -- Chile -- The History of Chile -- Discussion of the History of Chile -- Colombia -- The History of Colombia -- Discussion of the History of Colombia -- Ecuador -- The History of Ecuador -- Discussion of the History of Ecuador -- Mexico -- The History of Mexico -- Discussion of the History of Mexico -- Paraguay -- The History of Paraguay -- Discussion of the History of Paraguay 1 -- Discussion of the History of Paraguay 2 -- Peru -- The History of Peru -- Discussion of the History of Peru 1 -- Discussion of the History of Peru 2 -- Uruguay -- The History of Uruguay -- Discussion of the History of Uruguay 1 -- Discussion of the History of Uruguay 2 -- Venezuela -- The History of Venezuela -- Discussion of the History of Venezuela 1 -- Discussion of the History of Venezuela 2 -- Lessons from the Monetary and Fiscal History of Latin America -- Contributors.

Frontmatter -- CONTENTS -- ACKNOWLEDGMENTS -- INTRODUCTION -- PART I Radical Women in Central America -- CHRONOLOGY OF NICARAGUA -- CHRONOLOGY OF EL SALVADOR -- CHRONOLOGY OF GUATEMALA -- 1 Somocista Women, Right-Wing Politics, and Feminism in Nicaragua, 1936-1979 -- 2 Women in the Armed Struggles in Nicaragua: Sandinistas and Contras Compared -- 3 The Coalición Nacional de Mujeres: An Alliance of Left-Wing Women, Right-Wing Women, and Radical Feminists in Nicaragua -- 4 Right- and Left-Wing Women in Post-Revolutionary El Salvador: Feminist Autonomy and Cross-Political Alliance Building for Gender Equality -- 5 A Feminist Reconstruction of Parenthood Within Neoliberal Constraints: La Asociación de Madres Demandantes in El Salvador -- 6 Gender Equality, Democratization, and the Revolutionary Left in Central America: Guatemala in Comparative Context -- PART II Radical Women in South America -- CHRONOLOGY OF ARGENTINA -- CHRONOLOGY OF BRAZIL -- CHRONOLOGY OF CHILE -- 7 Spreading Right-Wing Patriotism, Femininity, and Morality: Women in Argentina, Brazil, and Chile, 1900-1940 -- 8 Changing the System from Within? Feminist Participation in the Brazilian Workers' Party -- 9 Nonpartisanship as a Political Strategy: Women Left, Right, and Center in Chile -- 10 Defending Dictatorship: Conservative Women in Pinochet's Chile and the 1988 Plebiscite -- Conclusion -- CONTRIBUTORS -- INDEX

Latin America has recently experienced a powerful resurgence of populism, a phenomenon that has had an outsized influence on the region's politics. What explains this resurgence? And what is distinctive about this new populist era? Answering these questions, Robert Barr offers a refined conceptualization of populism and an intriguing explanation of its recent electoral successes across the continent

Migration Legislation and Policy in Argentina / Lucila Nejamkis and Lila García -- Advances and Setbacks in Brazilian Migration Policy and Legislation / José Antônio Peres Gediel and Soledad Castillo Jara -- Immigration Legal Regulations in Chile: A Critical Analysis / Jaime Bassa Mercado and Fernanda Torres Villarubia -- Immigration Policies and Legislation in Colombia / Natalia Caicedo Camacho -- The Limits of Regularity and Irregularity in Ecuador's Organic Law on Human Mobility / Javier Arcentales Illescas and Gardenia Chávez Núñez -- Mexican Immigration Legislation and Policy / Felipe Sánchez Nájera -- Immigration Legislation in Peru: Between the Promotion of Human Rights and National Security / Luisa Feline Freier and Valeria Aron Said -- The Legal Status of the Immigrant in International Law and the Inter-American Human Rights System / Laura García Juan -- The Development of Latin American Regional Integration and Its Implications for States' Migration Policies / Natalia Caicedo Camacho -- Migration Regimes in South America: The South American Conference on Migration / Cristián Doña Reveco and Mayra Feddersen.

The Return of Cultural Heritage to Latin America takes a new approach to the question of returns and restitutions. It is the first publication to look at the domestic politics of claiming countries in order to understand who supports the claims and why. Drawing on analysis of articles published in national newspapers and interviews with individuals involved in return claims, the book demonstrates that such claims are inherently political. Focusing on Colombia, Mexico, and Peru, the book analyses how return claims contribute to the strengthening of state-sponsored discourses on the nation; the policy formation process that leads to the formulation of return claims; and who the main actors of the claims are, including civil society individuals, experts, state authorities, and Indigenous communities. The book proposes explanations for why Latin American countries are interested in specific objects held in Western museums and why these claims have come to light over the past three decades. The Return of Cultural Heritage to Latin America argues that return claims ought to be the object of public debate, allowing contemporary societies to address the legacy of colonialism. The book will be essential reading for scholars and students engaged in the study of museums and heritage, political science, history, anthropology, cultural policy and Latin America.